Boulder Peak Tri 2006

Sunday was the latest episode of Boulder Peak. Rated the 4th best race in America.

5 am is really early in Boulder. That’s when ! got there to line up for the main reason ! do these things. !’ve been looking forward to this for sooooo long now and ! got stuck with a guy to do my body marking. Bummer. Maybe next time.

! got a really good spot in transition. So good that Steve Pye racked his bike right next to me. He was telling me how Charley always has something good to say about everyone. This is the same Charley who has been to the last 3 races !’ve done even though he’s injured. He’s out at the track and the pool every week. He told me before the race he would be disappointed if he didn’t get any reports of bad behavior. With Jenna there, bad behavior was nearly guaranteed. If we can get Charley to start training with my coaches, Ben & Jerry, while he’s disabled he’ll be big enough next spring that we can cut him in half.

Who’s ready for a flashback? It is Boulder. Saturday was packet pick up/ expo. ! was strolling about when Tessa poked me in the gut. Likely judging how long it would last on her 4,000 calorie/day diet plan. She wants to be an Athena. That was a segue onto a tangent, not a topic change. She announced that from now on we are to address her by her street name. T-dawg. Don’t mess w/ Tess. You have been warned. Jenna, Becky and Sarah were all planning on writing “I love Jeff Carroll” on their torsos. ! don’t know why.

Back to Sunday morning. Still with me? Good. This nearly turned out to be the most exciting day of my life. Stay tuned. Transition is all set up so ! headed over to the tent just in time to see Charley discussing it’s location w/ one of the volunteers. So we made him help carry it to the new spot. Right between the beer (not BEER) and the massage tents. ! was in the Hott Pink wave so ! had a long time to wait for my start. General milling about ensued. ! visited the restroom where there was a long line of girls waiting. Waiting w/ full bladders. Waiting…to be tickled.

That water was the warmest !’ve swam in in Colorado. Women think guys in pink are really sexy. ! contemplated bagging the swim to try to pick up chicks. Maybe ! should have. About 32 minutes for 1,500 meters. Steve Pye was long gone when ! got to T1.

On the bike ! discovered my computer wasn’t working. ! had no idea how slow ! was going. It’s mostly a gradual climb from the Res. to the bottom of Old Stage Rd. Old Stage was not gradual. Maybe it is if you’re used to rock climbing walls. It turned up and ! noticed. It turned up some more. ! heard the volunteers shouting “on belay”. It tilted up some more. ! shifted to the easiest gear ! have. It was hard. ! pulled on the bars. They pulled back. ! stood on the pedals. Gravity wasn’t helping. On Old Stage gravity doesn’t pull you towards the tarmac. It pulls you towards your butt. My butt has gotten a lot more attractive (in a Newtonian sense) recently and was trying to make the road rise up to meet me. This was starting to hurt. Some people were walking already. About 1/3 of the way up. They said it’s only 2/3 of a mile. More of the same. Somewhere ! passed Becky in her smashing black outfit. Never saw her.

Now !’m 2/3 of the way. ! heard voices yelling my name. Maybe it’s Nicole Kidman trying to wake me from this nightmare so she can cuddle me and make the fear go away. No. It was Kim and Jenelle and Holly telling me to go faster and suffer more. !’d have changed their names to protect the innocent if they were innocent. They were there to torment. And the road slanted up more still. They yelled someone was passing me and ! should go faster. They must have said “faster”. ! couldn’t have gone any slower. ! stood up and attacked. It hurt before. It hurt more now. ! passed the guy. Would the harpies be still now? Would they go on to terrorize one of the other innocents? Had ! known Becky was there !’d have sacrificed her. Either ! was out of sight or the agony was. ! could no longer hear their taunts. They are all nice, sweet girls when !’m not possessed by demons.

“100 yards to go”. Did he mean horizontally or vertically? ! hoped it was altitude since at this angle it would be closer. After 7 minutes of eternity the grade collapsed. There was no more wall. Just an easy grade. There were high school kids with bottles. Full bottles. ! grabbed one and took a swig and the road turned down. Then it dropped more. No speedometer so ! couldn’t tell how fast ! was going. It felt like about 35 mph. There were 2 girls ahead. They passed the speed trailer at 31 and 32. ! passed it at 35. Cops ahead. ! could sense them ! grabbed the brakes and took pace off the girls. Two cops didn’t look cross-eyed at me. That was odd. Around the corner there was an ambulance and a bloody girl. She passed me mid-run. My velocity increased. Curves swooshed under my tires. It was shady here.

The bottom came to us. We turned onto the main road and started pedaling again. Not so bad. Right turn by the 20 km sign. This road was virgin blacktop. It was smooth, slightly downhill and straight. The GPS says ! was averaging 35 mph for that whole section. Up to 40mph. 4 ½ miles. So sweet. 9.5 miles more to ride. ! felt good.
T2 hurt my bare feet. Socks and shoes on. Get all the running stuff. As ! stood ! heard the announcer announce Jordan Jones finishing. ! was running now. Well, jogging. Jordan had been running. ! passed Yon. Volunteering, not racing. ! passed Michael. He was finishing. ! passed Luke. He squirted me. ! passed Denny. He said he would wait for me. He didn’t. It seemed like everyone was finishing just as ! was starting. ! pushed to the first aid station and walked while drinking. ! pushed on. My feet hurt. ! found the only muddy spot on the course and stepped in it. ! kept going. The aid stations were beyond the mile markers. The second one was near the 5 mile to go point on the bike course and there were still riders out there. The girl from the ambulance ran by me. Half her back was ragged. She was smiling. T-dawg told me walking was not allowed.

“Certain Death canal”. They were advertising cold water along with certain death. ! ran on. Another sign. Damn those marketing weasels. There would be Gatorade soon. Finally the turn-around. More of the canal adverts. ! took a pass. Out of the danger zone and past the 4 mile aid station ! saw hairless Bob. He had his jersey zipped so ! was forced to tell everyone he shaved his chest. The guy behind me asked if ! did too. ! turned around and flashed my shaggy B-cups at him. Don’t ever tell anyone about that.

! got by the 72 year old guy. There were more people coming out. Last aid station to walk through. Just over 1 mile to go. It’s not far enough to justify walking any. My feet hurt. ! must keep pushing. ! passed a girl walking and told her. She went back to running. ! didn’t notice the transition to pavement that marked ½ mile to go. ! saw the tents. ! heard four or five of our team yelling about the finish being at hand. ! couldn’t count them. ! couldn’t understand them. ! just saw blue and yellow. And Denny’s tattoos. ! had to sprint. It seemed like another 10 miles. ! went from a 10 min. pace to a 6:43 pace for the last two 10ths. That final sprint was slower than the fast boys and girls averaged for the whole 10k. Denny’s girlfriend flashed me. That’s what ! heard. Everyone saw them but me.

The finisher towels were icy cold and wet. ! was hot and dry. ! had to find way to the beer tent by myself. Then the massage tent. A calf seizure brought a masseuse to my assistance. ! nearly fell onto the guy on the other table.

Luke was wandering about so ! hugged him. Our little boy is coming home. He’ll be back at the track the week after next.

Once ! had food, ! could stagger back to our tent to feed and spend time with the team.

! did 2:56 for 95th of 142 in the hott pink wave. Way down the list. On the overall ! was in the top 49%. ! really should be doing better. Must keep trying. Those who did do better were Jocelyn who got 3rd in her age group and beat 9 out of 19 pro girls. She was 17th overall woman. Joe got 3rd in his age group and 23rd male overall ahead of 8 pros. And then there was Jordan. He won his age group and beat 10 of the 24 pro men. 17th fastest of everyone out there. If ! had ranked as well on the swim and run as ! did on the bike ! would have finished 12 minutes faster and 30 places higher.

A Primer on Pacelines

Why ride in a paceline? It saves energy while making the group go faster. It builds teamwork. It’s fun to go fast.

Team ONCE dominated the Team Time Trial in the Tour for years until Lance and his boys came along to challenge them. An amazing display of precision cycling. Team 7-11, the first American team to ride the Tour featuring Bob Roll and local pros Davis Phinney, Andy Hampsten and Ron Kiefel, ended up on the ground proving it’s not as easy as it looks. It could have been the Serotta built bikes rebelling against having Huffy stickers on them.

Drafting lets you ride faster for the same or less energy. Over ~15 mph most of your energy is pushing air out of the way. In a paceline the guy in front of you pushes the wind out of the way so you ride in a near vacuum. The closer you can get to them the less work you have to do. You get to pedal faster in big gears to develop leg speed.

Watch the pros and you’ll see 2 lines of riders as half the team passes the other half. We’ll start out in one line. The lead rider will ride @ a steady pace while each rider behind him will benefit from his draft. After a short while this effort will become quite tiring for the leader so he will “pull off” (usually to the left side) while the next guy takes a pull. He will also pull off and drift back. Once he reaches the back he will accelerate smoothly to get on the wheel of the back guy so he can start his rest. The whole group will rotate through in this manner

Remember to keep your pulls steady and short enough that you don’t slow down the group. Steady riding means you keep the same speed when you get on the front. Accelerations open gaps and each rider behind has to waste energy to get back into the draft.

Ride as close to the wheel ahead of you as you feel comfortable doing. The closer you get the more benefit you get. Do NOT, however, allow your front wheel to overlap the wheel ahead of you. If they swerve for any reason wheels can touch. Even though Ekimov can bump the other Discovery boys wheels when he thinks they are going too slow, most of us will lose skin doing that. Eki is considered one of the best bike handlers on the planet. Within a foot will get you some benefits. If you get too close to the wheel in front don’t grab the brakes. Remember there is someone right on your wheel who can’t see past you. To slow down gently pedal easier. If that isn’t enough sit up and catch the wind. None of this means you should stare @ that wheel in front of you, or @ their back or butt if you’re lucky. Look over their shoulder so you can see what is coming up. Pay attention. Stuff happens out there. Potholes, flats, Frenchmen protesting their grueling 20 hour work week. Pay attention. It’s polite, but not always possible, for the leader to announce hazards. Pay attention. It’s good to have some idea of where to go if something goes awry. Not the pub for a rye. And not on top of the rider in front of you.

Once you’ve finished your pull without trying to prove that you are the biggest, baddest and strongest guy to ever yank a paceline apart before diminishing the average speed, you will pull off and soft pedal until you can gently accelerate onto the back. Rest there until your turn comes around again. Remember that if you can slip onto the back with minimal effort you won’t interrupt your rest. Did ! mention Pay Attention? Catching onto the back is the only time you should get out of the saddle. Getting out of the saddle has the effect of pushing your bike backwards. Not really, but relatively. There is someone back there who is probably better looking without scabs.

1. Pay attention.
2. Keep your pulls short enough that you can maintain the pace that everyone else can do while drafting. Bigger groups get shorter pulls.
3. Don’t overlap wheels.
4. Pay attention.
5. Speed changes should be smooth and gradual.
6. Stay as close as you feel comfortable.
7. Keep your eyes up the road.
8. Go fast.
9. Pay attention.
10. Have fun.

2006 USAT Age Group National Championships. Kansas City, MO

Eight weeks and six days after ! jacked up my foot, ! landed in Kansas City, MO for Age Group Nationals. Since the injury and 3 days on crutches !’ve had 2 new coaches. Ben and Jerry. They really helped with my 9 week taper and making sure ! had plenty of fuel stored up for the race.
Poor Charley would have stomped butt out there if he hadn’t just had his meniscus trimmed down for lightness. He drove out anyway to support the rest of us. The rest of us were me, Katrin and Mary Sietsma. ! called Charley when ! got off the plane to see if he had made it to town yet. He had my gear. He was about a mile away and headed over to the Fairfield Inn to get a room. Katrin was in the hotel next door and Mary was in the airport Marriott, aka host hotel. The girls were already out @ the race site driving the course. Charley and ! went by to check me in then headed out there. ! can think of 4 more of us who qualified, but didn’t come out to play. Micah and Luke both qualified @ Rattlesnake like ! did. Michael just did a little race in Idaho a couple weeks ago and was still recovering. Nancy was signed up but not there.
There were a huge number of racers from CO. We ran into Steve Pye and his wife Andrea who are coaches so they know and adore Charley. With them were Laura and Eric. Laura has come out to swim with us on occasion. ! had credentials so we could get in anywhere around town no problem. After bike check-in it was back to the hotel to meet the girls and hunt dinner. We found what we thought was a brew pub. It turned out to be just a pub with brews. We made it work for us. Have you ever watched girls feed? It seems like they just quit when they aren’t hungry anymore. Makes you wonder how those super models get enough down to throw up.
After 9 weeks training with Ben and Jerry, ! decimated the field in the feeding competition. ! think ! frightened some of the other patrons, even the ones who looked like ringers. Back in the room ! started into the leg shaving. Ten minutes in ! was most of the way through a piss-poor job on one leg and losing patience. ! worked over the other leg to the same level of quality and went to bed.
Two alarms and a wake-up call was effective, but not as fun as being jumped on by my 5 year old nephew like the prior week. Made the coffee. Ate the groceries. Packed the bags and headed downstairs. It’s about a 25 minute drive out to the traffic jam for parking. We had plenty of time to set up.
! found our girls in the female section of Transition. It was a much more pleasant place to be than where ! had to park. Girls all over. One from St. Louis looks totally like someone ! used to know. ! haven’t yet figured out who yet. Since !’m such a nice guy ! didn’t gloat about how the arches around her come in pairs and are golden. Some dude recognized me from 5430. He had been inspired by my cheering. He also has met Charley and commented on how friendly, helpful, positive, motivating, humble etc. etc. he is. ! heard those comments a few times.
Water temps were mid 70s so wetsuits were not allowed. They told us it wasn’t supposed to get over 80* all day and it was sunny. A really nice day. The boy’s choir sang the National Anthem and the parachute guys lept out of a perfectly good airplane just like Sarah would.
Into the water. It was shallow for a long way out. ! should have run in deeper. ! was about 2 ½ minutes slower than Lake to Lake. T1 went ok. The ride was rolling hills. ! had so many guys blow by me ! was getting thigh envy. Then girls started going past and ! had other thoughts. Up and down. Up and down. Half way in we turned back West for the first time into the wind. Those sections were tough, but not too long. At 17 miles ! got by a 70 year old guy. Then a couple hundred yards further on ! got a 71 year old lady. ! just wasn’t getting any power. ! only managed 20.3 mph. Maybe ! should start showing up for these things in shape. On the last bit before T2 ! pulled my tootsies out of the shoes and my calf cramped up. ! had taken 3 salt caps before the start and 3 more in T1.
Tugged on the brand new racing flats and socks and hit the run. First mile was 8:12. Lake to Lake was the longest run !’d done since ! got hurt and it was a bit short. It was starting to hurt. ! went into full IM run mode. Run a mile and walk the aid stations. By 2.6 miles ! was walking again. ! told myself that each time ! walked it would only be until my heart rate dropped down to 165. That wasn’t long. ! got to mile 3 and got a drink. Back to running. Then walking. ! think ! kept the walking to about ¾ of a mile total. Even running down the long hills was leaving me wiped out.
! had estimated that running under 1 hour would beat 2:45 and would be tolerable. At 1.5 miles to go ! calculated a 10 minute pace would do it. ! could do that as long as ! kept running. ! ran through the last aid station then around the corner for the final stretch. Passing the parking lot ! still couldn’t see the finish. ! knew it was close. ! passed Steve Pye and his wife standing on the side of the road. He’s in my group and hadn’t been optimistic. He had been done for nearly 30 minutes. Now ! could see the picnic area. Then Katrin cheering me in. It was about 100 yards downhill with a 90* left at 25 yds. To go. ! was really pushing it hard for that 7:22 pace on the last third of a mile. Then it was over. It still hurt. My feet were sore and my throat was parched. Mary was still out there. ! had a 10 minute head start on her. They were playing 80s songs and ! was recovered enough to recognize them so ! limped to the fence chugging fluids. And there she came. We rounded her up so Charley could take pictures of me getting armpit sweat on their shoulders. One day they’ll look back on that and grimace.
Time to feed. We had a choice of condiments to put on our burgers with white bread buns. No veggies to top those burgers. At least the burgers were tasty. Pasta salad and a bag of chips.
My Mom lives in a small town. When she wants to go shopping in the “big city” she drives an hour to where “At Close Range” was filmed. Madonna called Evansville, IN the most boring town she had ever been to. That’s where the girl behind me in the lunch line was from. She had decided to do a triathlon and qualified for Nats. This was her second race ever. She may have made Team USA. If she hadn’t been so cute !’d be even more annoyed. She had seen the girl who fell down 3 times on the run. The volunteers pulled her out of the ditch and assisted her to the finish line.
After a shower, ! loaded up my gear and we headed back to the Marriot. Charley and Katrin needed to get on the road home. Mary and ! had time to kill before our flights out. ! hung out in the lobby while she showered and packed. The wait was worth it. A really cute little girl asked me to help her take off her….pedals. She had noticed my bulging muscles. They weren’t that tight. She had done 2:28. Her mom wasn’t going to send her to Switzerland because she wanted to waste that ca$h on back surgery. Mary and ! decided to head to the airport to see if she could get an earlier flight and then to feed. At lunch ! noticed ! had missed a whole strip of hair up the back of one leg and lots of other patches. Then she pointed out to me that my “credentials” were actually just a luggage tag. How embarrassing. ! still wore it all the way home.
Friday at check in ! had a disagreement with Charley. Based on the way Andrea was touching Steve Pye, ! decided she was his wife and Laura wasn’t. Charley thought Laura was his wife and must have beaten up Andrea later for hanging on her guy like that. ! sat across the aisle from Laura on the flight home. She told me that Charley had been cheering her on, but calling her Andrea. So, clearly ! was correct. Na Na Na Na Na Na.
! pulled in @ 1:48 for 52nd of @ least 53. That’s only 46:30 away from the top spot on the podium. Katrin got a good place (20th). She didn’t qualify for Worlds unless she got a roll-down spot. Mary was out of contention for a roll-down. Final results should be posted here http://www.usatriathlon.org/ soon.
Remember to count your blessings, treasure your experiences and find the beauty in every hardship.